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Neverwinter Nights seriesHelp me pick a class for SoU/HotU(41 posts)solved(41 posts)solved
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This is my favourite topic
Posted April 15, 2013
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PenutBrittle: Hmmm. I've hit a brick wall with a mummy. Part of the problem is its immunity to normal weapons, and that I've been pretty screwed with +1 weapons as I've only found a +1 crossbow so far.
Can't remember that one. Magic Weapon spell or scroll? Or swap to a henchman full of combat spells?

Edit.
Yeah, magic weapon should be available as a 1st level bard spell..
Post edited April 15, 2013 by Jarmo
Posted April 15, 2013
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PenutBrittle: Hmmm. I've hit a brick wall with a mummy.
Try coating your weapon with "Alchemist's fire" - adds fire damage for a few rounds and mummies don't like fire.
I think there is a guaranteed one at Drogan's library.
Post edited April 15, 2013 by itai.sharim
Posted April 15, 2013
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Jarmo: Yeah, magic weapon should be available as a 1st level bard spell..
Oh shoot, forgot about that one. I don't have it, though, so I may need to track down an earlier save. Thanks!
Posted April 15, 2013
I'd say alchemist's fire is your best approach here; since you won't be able to swap out bard spells after you start into Red Dragon Disciple and magic weapon becomes entirely useless once you actually have a magic weapon, you don't want to actually invest one of your precious spells known.

As for the heavy flail, that'll also work. The important thing for a high strength character is being two-handed, and having a good critical threat range and/or multiplier. The greatsword and heavy flail are both 19-20/x2, so nothing wrong with either. Since NWN1 doesn't have any 18-20/x2 weapons, you're mostly indifferent between them. However, definitely avoid the greataxe; its 20/x3 critical hit is strictly inferior to the scythe's 20/x4.
Posted April 15, 2013
I did go back and pick up the Alchemist's Fire from earlier and it did work, but I think I'm going to restart anyway. I was only two hours in the game, and now I can make sure I snag a two handed weapon proficiency from the get-go. Probably going to to with scythes for the sheer awesome looking-ness (I'm nothing if not a visual person), the x4 thing looks nice and the fact that I always need to throw a wrench in my otherwise perfect builds somewhere. :)

EDIT: Basically I figure that if I ran into a problem now, I'll probably run into more later on (and there's a LOT of game left to get through), combined with the fact that I was already thinking of hacking my game to swap out feats anyway.
Post edited April 15, 2013 by PenutBrittle
Posted April 15, 2013
Something to consider is a Paladin/Sorcerer/Dragon Disciple build, with the Sorc left at lvl 1 or so to unlock the Dragon Disciple for the impressive stat boosts (all the stats help since Paladin really is all over the board requirement wise) Another way to go is potentially 20/21 lvls of Sorc with 10 lvls of Dragon Disciple and the rest as Paladin, you will be a strong melee beast and set up right you can even grab all 3 ranks of Automatic Still Spell for full arcane casting in full plate w/ no failiure (need to be able to cast 9th lvl spells, and 25 or so ranks into spellcasting skill) Just be sure to have most of your Sorc spells picks be the buffs like Haste, True Strike, Invisibility or Greater Magic Weapon etc, since your offensive spell power won't be very impressive. The reason for the latter would be - having a lvl 20/21 pixie familiar will give you someone to lockpick/trap disarm just about anything you will find in the main campaigns. She won't be very combat friendly compared to your lofty levels end game, but you won't be using her for anything else. This lets you pick the better henchmen to aid you in combat (Daelan and Linu are my personal favs no matter which class I run) Since you will be focusing on Charisma so highly the Paladin part will turn it into extra saving throw bonus', and the stat boosts from Dragon Disciple will let you easy have around 25/26 base strength for that ever wonderful Devastating Critical feat (Greatsword focus ftw ^_^) This is the first build I used to make it all the way through all 3 original NWN campaigns and let me tell you, once you make your way from being Aribeth's lapdog to Valsharess' worst nightmare you will have a powerhouse with both divine/arcane spellcasting abilities (to some extent) and a completely swollen ego.
2 small side notes, first be careful which locks you have the pixie pick, certain ones can cause chaotic allignment shifts which might temporarily halt you ability to snag Paladin levels, and second if you take at least a single level of paladin and sorc right off the bat this will allow you to open up Starry Tower mage guild quest chain, and the Neverwinter artifacts chain w/o requiring any extra hoop jumping. The Starry tower might not seem all that impressive, but it helps open up more quests later on as well as allows free access to the crafting labs to make your own impressive gear with the right recipes (no this doesn't require craft armor/weapon skills, just place items on the tables once you have recipes and bam you got it)
Posted April 15, 2013

I did go back and pick up the Alchemist's Fire from earlier and it did work, but I think I'm going to restart anyway. I was only two hours in the game, and now I can make sure I snag a two handed weapon proficiency from the get-go. Probably going to to with scythes for the sheer awesome looking-ness (I'm nothing if not a visual person), the x4 thing looks nice and the fact that I always need to throw a wrench in my otherwise perfect builds somewhere. :)
If you go for the weapon master later on as your third class, his special class bonus will turn the scythe into a x5 critical multiplier. Of course, he requires a lot of feats as prerequisites (weapon focus, dodge, mobility, spring attack, expertise, and whirlwind attack) but he's an awesome payoff once you reach him.

EDIT: Basically I figure that if I ran into a problem now, I'll probably run into more later on (and there's a LOT of game left to get through), combined with the fact that I was already thinking of hacking my game to swap out feats anyway.
Sometimes it's a good idea to plan ahead. Here are a couple possible builds (up to the 25th level) that come to mind:

Elf Bard/Dragon Disciple/Champion of Torm 16 str, 16 dex, 12 con, 10 int, 8 wis, 14 cha
level 1 - Bard - weapon proficiency (scythe)
level 2 - Bard
level 3 - Bard - weapon focus (scythe)
level 4 - Bard
level 5 - Bard
level 6 - DD - power attack
level 7 - DD
level 8 - DD
level 9 - DD - cleave
level 10 - DD
level 11 - DD
level 12 - DD - improved critical (scythe)
level 13 - DD
level 14 - DD
level 15 - DD - great cleave
level 16 - CoT
level 17 - CoT - dodge
level 18 - CoT - toughness
level 19 - CoT - improved power attack
level 20 - CoT
level 21 - DD - overwhelming critical (scythe)
level 22 - DD
level 23 - DD - devastating critical (scythe)
level 24 - DD - epic weapon focus (scythe)
level 25 - DD

Half-Orc Bard/Barbarian/Dragon Disciple 18 str, 12 dex, 14 con, 10 int, 8 wis, 12 cha

level 1 - Bard - weapon proficiency (scythe)
level 2 - Bard
level 3 - Bard - power attack
level 4 - Bard
level 5 - Barbarian
level 6 - DD - cleave
level 7 - DD
level 8 - DD
level 9 - DD - weapon focus (scythe)
level 10 - DD
level 11 - DD
level 12 - DD - improved critical (scythe)
level 13 - DD
level 14 - DD
level 15 - DD - great cleave
level 16 - Barbarian
level 17 - Barbarian
level 18 - Barbarian - improved power attack
level 19 - Barbarian
level 20 - Barbarian
level 21 - DD - overwhelming critical (scythe)
level 22 - DD
level 23 - DD - devastating critical (scythe)
level 24 - DD - epic weapon focus (scythe)
level 25 - DD

Human Bard/Dragon Disciple/Weapon Master with 16 str, 14 dex, 12 con, 14 int, 8 wis, 12 cha
(updated with a nice suggestion from Coelocanth)

level 1 - bard - weapon proficiency (scythe), dodge
level 2 - bard
level 3 - bard - weapon focus (scythe)
level 4 - bard
level 5 - bard
level 6 - DD - mobility
level 7 - DD
level 8 - DD
level 9 - DD - spring attack
level 10 - DD
level 11 - DD
level 12 - DD - expertise
level 13 - DD
level 14 - Bard
level 15 - Bard - whirlwind attack
level 16 - WM
level 17 - WM
level 18 - WM - Improved Critical (scythe)
level 19 - WM
level 20 - WM
level 21 - WM - Power Attack
level 22 - WM
level 23 - DD
level 24 - DD - Cleave
level 25 - DD

Another way to go is potentially 20/21 lvls of Sorc with 10 lvls of Dragon Disciple and the rest as Paladin
You will not reach the level 40 cap playing through SoU/HotU. More likely you'll finish around level 25 or so, and you want your character to really shine by level 10 so you get to feel powerful for most of your playthrough. Paladin/Sorcerer/DD is a good build, but given the level range he'll be playing he has to choose whether he's a spellcaster or a warrior; he will not have the capacity to be both (not with any effectiveness, at any rate).

If you want to play a spellcaster Sorcerer, then the limits of your multi-classing should be either one level in barbarian or two in Paladin. After that, don't touch any other class until you've got your 20 levels in Sorcerer (at which point, either continue with sorcerer for epic feats or multi-class). If you're going to be a warrior, then put one level in Sorcerer and focus on your other classes until reach the epic levels, then revisit sorcerer at that time.
Post edited April 15, 2013 by Darvin
Posted April 15, 2013

Another way to go is potentially 20/21 lvls of Sorc with 10 lvls of Dragon Disciple and the rest as Paladin
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Darvin: You will not reach the level 40 cap playing through SoU/HotU. More likely you'll finish around level 25 or so, and you want your character to really shine by level 10 so you get to feel powerful for most of your playthrough. Paladin/Sorcerer/DD is a good build, but given the level range he'll be playing he has to choose whether he's a spellcaster or a warrior; he will not have the capacity to be both (not with any effectiveness, at any rate).

If you want to play a spellcaster Sorcerer, then the limits of your multi-classing should be either one level in barbarian or two in Paladin. After that, don't touch any other class until you've got your 20 levels in Sorcerer (at which point, either continue with sorcerer for epic feats or multi-class). If you're going to be a warrior, then put one level in Sorcerer and focus on your other classes until reach the epic levels, then revisit sorcerer at that time.
Perhaps not with only the 2 expansion set campaigns, but if he is doing a very thorough run from the Original all the way through HotU then he should easily pull off the levels needed to make Paladin/Sorc/DD a very viable build. However you certainly have a point, if he were to do my build then 1-2 levels of Paladin then maxing out Sorc in that order would be essential for unlocking the epic feats necessary to make it viable
Post edited April 16, 2013 by Xyravos
Posted April 15, 2013
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Darvin: -snip-
Ha! I was talking with my friend earlier today and he suggested throwing some WM levels in there. I log on and find you've suggested the exact same thing. Seems like it was meant to be.

Thanks a ton, your suggestions should help a lot. Now to get back to trying to track down that Shadow Hart again.
Posted April 15, 2013
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PenutBrittle: Ha! I was talking with my friend earlier today and he suggested throwing some WM levels in there. I log on and find you've suggested the exact same thing. Seems like it was meant to be.

Thanks a ton, your suggestions should help a lot. Now to get back to trying to track down that Shadow Hart again.
Honestly, I wouldn't go for WM with a Bard/RDD build. Yeah, it looks sexy on paper, but you have to waste so many feats to qualify for WM as well the fact you don't get a full attack routine (you'll only end up with a BAB of +15 at level 20 for 3 attacks per round) if you level it as suggested* that I don't feel it's worth it.

*You could choose to level it a bit differently, delaying your last couple RDD levels into epic and taking a couple more Bard levels pre-epic to get a full attack routine.

As for the SOR/PAL/RDD build, it can be fun and powerful, but I really don't see it coming together early enough to be fun even if you run it through all three campaigns. Taking the character from NWN OC to SOU will be completely overpowered and will gain you only a couple levels, if memory serves. Maybe if you start with SoU, then go to the main campaign (I believe the mobs scale in many areas in the NWN OC while they don't in SoU), then on to HotU, and you might find it a more viable way to go.

I could be wrong though. It's been a long while since I played through the campaigns.
Posted April 15, 2013

*You could choose to level it a bit differently, delaying your last couple RDD levels into epic and taking a couple more Bard levels pre-epic to get a full attack routine.
That's a great suggestion. Replace the last two DD levels with bard so you're a Bard 7 / DD 8 / Weapon Master 5 when you hit level 20. That improves your base attack bonus by a critical 1 point which is a huge boost. Definitely do this if you go down that road. I've updated my previous post to reflect the altered sequence.

I'd agree this is feat intensive, but there aren't that many great combat feats in NWN1. Delaying improved critical and cleave are really the only major losses, and in the long run it pays off handsomely.

Maybe if you start with SoU, then go to the main campaign (I believe the mobs scale in many areas in the NWN OC while they don't in SoU), then on to HotU, and you might find it a more viable way to go.
Varies from one location to the next, and they only scale up to a point. Bosses, however, never vary. I find it generally works best if you play each campaign for its intended level range.
Post edited April 16, 2013 by Darvin
Posted April 16, 2013
Besides, for a melee character knockdown is the best feat to take.
I just love running next to something like a lich, then knockdown and whack whack it to bits while it's helpless.
Posted April 16, 2013
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Jarmo: Besides, for a melee character knockdown is the best feat to take.
I just love running next to something like a lich, then knockdown and whack whack it to bits while it's helpless.
And take Improved Knockdown so you can knock down giants: that's good fun too!
Posted April 16, 2013
BTW I'm cutting and pasting this entire thread for my own NWN file. Prima doesn't have anything on you folks. :D
Posted April 16, 2013
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Coelocanth: As for the SOR/PAL/RDD build, it can be fun and powerful, but I really don't see it coming together early enough to be fun even if you run it through all three campaigns. Taking the character from NWN OC to SOU will be completely overpowered and will gain you only a couple levels, if memory serves. Maybe if you start with SoU, then go to the main campaign (I believe the mobs scale in many areas in the NWN OC while they don't in SoU), then on to HotU, and you might find it a more viable way to go.

I could be wrong though. It's been a long while since I played through the campaigns.
The only problem with running Sorc/Pal/RDD in that order is that in the Original campaign, when you go through the Prologue you get defaulted to level 3 in the stables at the end, no matter what level you are. I guess if you could "unlock" the first part of the Original campaign, then take it through SoU then skip the prologue going to part 1 that might be more efficient. I don't remember SoU mobs not scaling though, but it's been a while myself tbh. My most recent attempt was a rather fail shifter. Shifters are awesome and fun, but I have yet to figure out a build (non dragon, those are way too dang bulky) that works well in the official campaigns
Besides, you don't actually need a full 40 levels for this to work. The 2+ lvls of paladin only serve to grant Cha to saving throws, Disease Immunity, Immunity to Fear at lvl 2, as well as heavy armor/martial weapon proficiency. Assuming you are fine with only a few choices, Sorc's can gain lvl 9 spells at 18 and that grants access to the Automatic Still Spells and a level 18 pixie familiar is still rather handy at dealing with most traps/locks (unless patches have changed this since I ran this build) while freeing up hireling spots. That leaves the RDD classes for 21+ and by then your feats are all (theoretically) unlocked by 30 at latest. And 30 is most certainly possible with all 3 camps
Post edited April 16, 2013 by Xyravos
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Neverwinter Nights seriesHelp me pick a class for SoU/HotU(41 posts)solved(41 posts)solved
(41 posts)solved